The Neapolitan Baked Meatloaf

The Neapolitan Baked Meatloaf or Polpettone Al Forno. The weather turned very cold today, the perfect time to make a hardy winter’s Neapolitan meatloaf – Polpettone al Forno.

It’s a delight that needs little introduction except to say that if you see polpettone on a menu, don’t expect to get piling plate of polpette, meatballs or sauce for that matter.

Polpettone is the big, and I do mean big version of the meatball and you’ll rarely find a Neapolitan eating it with sauce or a Ragù.

Quick and easy to make, serve it with some oven roasted potatoes and you’ll have the perfect winter’s meal.

INGREDIENTS:

• 17 oz of ground beef
• 2 eggs
• 1 Cup of  grated Parmigiano Reggiano Cheese
• 3 slices white bread
• 1/2 (4 oz) cup milk
• Bread crumbs
• Salt and Pepper
• Oil
• Butter

METHOD:

1. Pour the milk into a small bowl and break up the white bread into the milk.
2. In a large bowl, add the meat, eggs, parmigiano, and salt and pepper to taste.
3. Squeeze the excess milk from the bread and add it to the meat mixture.
4. Mix well and shape into a ball.
5. Sprinkle breadcrumbs over the meat and around the bowl and roll the meat around in the bowl until all sides are lightly coated with the breadcrumbs.
6. Grease the bottom of a baking pan with butter.
7. Shape the meat into an oblong form and transfer it to the baking pan.
8. Add more bread crumbs as needed so the top and sides are lightly coated.
9. Drizzle oil around the bottom of the pan.
10. Bake uncovered at 350° F for 45 minutes.
11. Remove from the oven and let it sit a few minutes before slicing

Source and pictures Napoli Unplugged